Monthly Archives: February 2012

So did I mention how our landlord wants his house back on June 1st and since our orders got deleted, we probably won’t be moving anywhere until well into the summer and that means that pretty soon we will be homeless? No?

Well yep, that’s happening.

Soooo…I’ve been craigslist house hunting.

Anytime I see something interesting, I Google Earth it. It’s a way to at least get somewhat of a “feel” for the immediate neighborhood.

This is what I saw today

scroll around to the right….

and a little more to the right….(directly across the street from the rental house)

and even if it’s not. PASS.

I mean I know its just trash, but still. Struck me as HI.lari.ous b/c its just not something you expect to see when you are trolling around on GE spying on people when they are totally unaware.

I wonder what the guy driving around in the Google Earth car thought about this at the time. They must see the craziest things. I don’t know why I think about these things but I do.

And in a totally unrelated side note:
I am hitting up Bikram yoga for the first time ever after work on Wednesday. Hopefully I will not melt away and will live to blog about it. Say a prayer that I make it through to tell the story? Thx.

We decided it needs to be called Fro-Gro. We are brilliant and will be millionaires soon we just know it. So don’t you all go and try to steal our idea.

#2- I PR’ed my 5k time by 26 seconds. Granted it was on the T-Mill and not an actual race, but still it is the fastest I have run 3.1 miles since I have really been keeping track. High five.

Sorry for the blurry. I stopped Mr T as soon as I hit the time to take a pic, so I was panting and pretty much dying since I hadn’t done my cool down yet. I haven’t quite mastered this talent yet but I have high hopes for myself.

For mile #1 I alternated 1 1/2 min run/walk and then for mile #2 and #3 I pumped it up to 2 min run/ and 1 1/2 min walk. I did all running at a 12 min per mile pace. At the end I did some sprints to ensure I made the time. Felt GREAT and am very excited to be on my way to running three 12 min miles consecutively.

For the past two runs I have been using my Superfeet insoles as opposed to the custom made ones they gave me to try. I think I actually prefer them so I am going to take the other ones back. Still not totally sold 100% on the shoes yet, but I’m going to give them another week or so and see how I feel before deciding on keeping them or taking them back and trying something else.

I saw the preview for this movie (in the theater about to watch another movie) probably around 6-7 times. I swear, I teared up EVERY time I saw it.

I didn’t really understand exactly what the movie was about, but I got the fact that it centered around a boy who lost his father in the 9/11 attacks. Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock were in it and something about the way the preview was done was just so moving…I really wanted this to be one of those great movies that you know you will cry in, but you love it and want everyone else to see it and cry with you.

None of that really happened. Boo. Wait, why am I upset that I am NOT crying? hmmmm

I had a hard time with this one. To me, this should have been one of the greats. Directed by Stephen Daldry who did The Reader and The Hours, Tom Hanks and Sandy B, compelling story about a subject that is so dear to our hearts….should have been movie magic. Don’t get me wrong I didn’t ENTIRELY dislike this movie, I just wanted it to be so much better than I thought it ended up being.

The movie centered around Oskar Shell, a young boy who has lost his father in the 9/11. While I thought his acting was pretty great, especially for someone so young, I felt like the character was one big contradiction. He was supposedly afraid of everything, yet he spent most of the movie making his way all around NYC all by himself talking to strangers. I used to be quite the scaredy cat as a kid his age, and there is no way I would have done half the things he did. So that seemed a little off.

He was also very troubled and very hard to like and connect with. Its tough to really enjoy or appreciate a film, when you find yourself majorly disliking the main character. I understand that he was troubled by his experience and the almost insurmountable pain he was dealing with affected how he came across, but I just felt like there was something missing. The link that made us actually care.

There was also a sort of anti-climactic feel to the movie that was also disappointing. The majority of the movie centers around Oskar’s search for a lock. He found a mysterious key in his fathers closet a year after his death and he was convinced that finding that lock would somehow keep him connected to the fading memory of his father. That search does come to a conclusion ( a rather anti-climactic one) but then the film takes a bit of a turn and dives more into his relationship with his mother which hadn’t really developed much throughout the rest of the movie.

All in all, I’m not really sure what this movie was trying to tell me. A definite let down based on what I thought it was going to be. I did like Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock (per usual) but other than that, kind of a wash.

Well, I did it. I made it through 36 years of life. Did you ever stop to think about that? Whatever you turn, you just COMPLETED that year of life. When you turn 1, you just went through a year of life. Maybe this is totally obvs to everyone out there but I don’t think I really realized that until I was in my 20’s. Either that makes me really slow or really progressive. I will continue to think the latter.

But I digress…(kind of)

Do you ever notice the time as your birthday. I do. ALL THE TIME. I don’t purposely look for it, but I end up seeing it a lot. Not sure if this is something that other people do as well, but if you don’t I bet you will now. You’re welcome. I planned to take a screen shot of my phone at my (birthday) time. Then I forgot. Mostly b/c Kyle came home from school and was well, being Kyle. But I then awoke my phone to check if I had any emails right at the perfect time. I let out a little squeal and Paul looked at me like I had lost it. Buuuuuut I got it! Whew!!

Then Paul figured out what was going on and he got in on the fun too

He liked his a lot b/c it had the time AND the date on it. Fancy Schmancy.

Then I remembered a while ago when I randomly saw this on my speedometer on my car

Yep my milage is exactly my birthday. Luckily I was at a stoplight when this happened and my phone was handy so I could take a pic. Otherwise this moment would have been lost forever. The horror.

Alrighty let’s get to the day itself. I’ve been rambling long enough.

Started out with breakfast in bed from my sweetie. Awww….

Oats with all the goodies and some bacon. And coffee. And one puppy who was confused.

After bkfast in bed, I checked my list for the day

Sleep in- check. Time to run.

We headed for the gym and got our sweat on. I ran .50 of a mile slowly to warm up and then did my new workout where I am running faster for shorter so I can work up to a 12 min mile. I alternated running for a minute and a half at 12 min mile pace and then walked for a minute and a half. I did that for 30 min and even upped my pace at the end. Then I did some sprints to finish out 5k distance. Finished 3.1 miles in 43.38. Not too shabby. Walked a bit to cool down and stretched and Paul got camera happy.

Next we hit up Starbucks so I could get my free b-day coffee. They will make you whatever you want, so I got a venti, iced, non-fat, light ice white mocha, with whip. I never get this, but I love it. So I gave myself a little b-day treat.

Run 3 miles- check
Get free starbucks- check

Went home and Paul made me lunch while I showered up and got ready

Grilled cheese and turkey on a cibatta bun with a side of carrots.

Then it was time to head out for the best part of the day…massage and facial!

I had a Living Social deal for a massage/facial at Sorella Salon and Spa which is where I normally get my hair done. I had never tried any of their spa services but had always wanted to, so this was a perfect opportunity.

A girl named Emily did my massage and it was great!! She concentrated on my hips and feet which were sore from running. It felt therapeutic and relaxing all at the same time. Erin did my facial and it was probably the best facial I have ever had in my life. She asked me about everything before she used it, she did the best face massage I have ever had, she wasn’t overly chatty and asked if I wanted any extractions (which I didn’t) so I thought that was a great touch. She also didn’t overly pressure me to buy any specific products. It really was relaxing and not stressful which is what it should be anyway!! I would def go see her again and highly recommend her to anyone in the Seattle/Issaquah area!

After I was all relaxed and refreshed, Paul and Kyle picked me up and we headed to dinner. I had a Living Social for that too. Yep, addicted I know.

We went to Snoqualmie to hit up Mabel’s on the Ridge

I’ve been there once before FOREVER ago and remember enjoying the experience. Our waiter Pete was awesome. Kyle was being 13 and Pete just rolled with the punches. He joked around with him and made us all feel very comfortable and at home. Remember our experience at our Valentines Day celebration? This was pretty much the exact opposite. Every time we even took a sip of our tea, our glass was refilled. We had TOO much ice in our cups at all times which is normally the exact opposite problem I usually have at restaurants. I never can seem to get enough ice in my tea.

Kyle insisted on getting hot wings, not realizing what “hot” actually meant. He had to use ice and milk for about 20 min afterward to get his lips to stop burning. Funny kid.

Hurts so good.

Paul had the grilled chicken cesar

I had the blackened salmon cajun Alfredo. It was everything I hoped it would be and more for a birthday dinner.

I couldn’t finish it, so Paul and Kyle helped me. It ended up being the table favorite.

Headed home and hung out in bed to finish out the day. All of the items on the list- CHECK.

Not a bad way to spend a birthday aye? Not sure why I went all Canadian there, but I did. Three more days off until work again. Bring on the weekend!!

I think it is so incredibly cool how Facebook has helped people to connect in such a way that even makes wishing people a Happy Birthday so much easier. I know some may think that it’s impersonal or has less meaning, but I think the exact opposite. I would say that around 85% of the people that wish each other happy birthday on FB wouldn’t have done so if FB wasn’t around.

It’s right there in front of you…..”today is so and so’s birthday”, and you think, “hey, I haven’t talked to that person in five years (in person) but when I did, I thought they were swell and I can for sure take 15-20 seconds out of my day to wish them a happy day.”

I don’t think that’s impersonal at all. I think its lovely. It’s just another tool to help people stay connected, even if it is only once a year.

I dug back through my FB timeline to see how this year compared to past years. Here is what I found:

2011: 60 FB shout outs, quite a bit lower than this year, but still highly impressive. Makes sense, I get older, I know more people…arrows are for a sampling of my nicknames. My friends are so creative!

2010: 43 friends gave a shout out. WOW! 2010 was a big year for me, I must have made a lot of friends to get such an increase in 2011. Or more peeps used FB. I will go with the former. Arrow= funny.

2009: 43 friends gave shout outs. No change from 2009 to 2010. Slow year for me. 🙂 FB was still new for some stragglers at this point….Jill (arrow) was an example of that.

2008: No stats. Thanks to FB timeline I see that I joined FB in 2008 on Feb 11. Seeing as my birthday was only a few 12 days after that, it wasn’t a big year for my by way of B-day shout outs. 😉

I had a GREAT day today…more info to come RE: the specifics. Try not to be to anxious awaiting all the deets. Yes I say deets and I’m pretty sure that makes me .10 cooler than if I didn’t.

On Monday (President’s Day), Paul and I decided to go and find a place to spend all of the leftover money that we didn’t spend at Target and see if we could find any awesome specials on some new kicks.

Paul has been running in his Nike Free’s for a while now and I have been in the Reebok version. I forget what they are called. And I am too lazy to Google it right now. But I have had the feeling that I need to be running in something a little more stable so we decided to do the whole shebang and get our feet and gait looked at and assessed and get some good shoe recommendations from someone who knew what they were talking about.

We hit up the internet and discovered this little huge gem of a store that was surprisingly only about 15 min away from our house, in a outdoor shopping mall that we frequent often but have never seen before. We are obviously oblivious to our surroundings very observant.

They had this awesome system called Shoe Dog (I never really understood the dog tie in, but it was cute to see the colorful spotted puppies all over the place) that would size up our arches, analyze our gait and pop out awesome recommendation for fantastic new kicks that would change our lives forever. Ok, maybe not that last part but you catch my drift.

I am a bad blogger and somehow spent about TWO HOURS in the store doing all this and didn’t manage to take ONE picture of the whole experience. I think I was too mesmerized with the number of choices, the constant back and forth on the treadmill to try everything out, and I had to pee. Thankfully they had a bathroom so that last thing was only a problem for a little while. But still.

An awesome associate named Justin took Paul and I through the whole process. I’ve been through a little bit of a similar process before back when I had some issues with plantar fasicitis but this was really extensive and pretty cool.

They even fitted us with custom inserts that we could try out for a while and bring back if we just weren’t feelin them.

We both tried on what seemed like a hundred pair of shoes. It is pretty difficult to really get a feel for the difference. I found some a little more comfortable which had less stability so it was pretty hard to figure out which ones would really make me into the running champion that I aim to be help me to stay injury free as I continue to train.

In the end, I settled on these: Saucony Hurricane 13

Paul ended up with his faves: Nike’s. That guy probably would have married Nike if I hadn’t come along. He loves them with all his soul.

These are my custom inserts that they made for me

and these are the Superfeet that I also got to try out.

I had been in the green superfeet for a few years, but Justin said that they were probably a little much for me and that the blue or berry would be better. I’m gonna give these a whirl to see how they go.

We also got a ginormous bottle of Body Glide. I have found that I can’t run with out it. Miracle stuff.

After our hours spent figuring out what shoes to get, we went to the 3rd happiest place on earth, IKEA.

We had lunch and browsed around at some containers and such for moving, but amazingly enough didn’t buy anything. I think that was mostly due to the fact that we were kind of crunched for time since we had to get home. We did however have enough time to get the $1 frozen yogurt cone. Can’t leave IKEA without one it seems.

Later that day we made it to the gym for a run in our new kicks. We both did an interval workout for around 2-3 miles for 30 min. I had some pain in my left heel and my right ankle was also hurting. I haven’t had either of these issues before so I am a little confused about whether or not it was the new shoes, or the new inserts, or just an off day. I’m going to keep trying though to see if the issues continue. Also going to try the berry Superfeet to see if there is any difference.

Paul wasn’t a HUGE fan of his either, but is also gonna give them a bit just to see if it’s just an adjustment thing.

The awesome thing about RoadRunner Sports where we got them is that we can return them within 90 days for a full refund if we don’t like them. That’s a pretty sweet deal.

So I was planning on posting today about our awesome experience buying new shoes yesterday (sounds riveting doesn’t it?) but instead I have a out-of-the blue, completely unexpected, hit us in the face like a wrecking ball update instead. Funny how that happens isn’t it?

As soon as Paul sent me a text asking if he could call my cell or desk phone, I knew.

I knew that we were back to waiting

I knew that I was going to have to call back recruiters and decline offers to go to Colorado to interview for three different jobs that were looking very promising

I knew that I would have to send out more emails to friends and family to tell them “Never mind” all that jazz I mentioned before about going to Colorado…nope…not happening any more.

I knew that I would have to figure out how to wrap my head around what does all this mean and why is all this happening?

I knew that I would have to wait another few days *gasp* months??? (NO!!!!) to find out what this means for our family and where we might move next.

I also knew what I was getting into when I married an Army man. And I have never regretted that decision, not for a second.

I’ve been kind of a self-controlled wreck today. My mind is racing, my shoulders ache, my head hurts. We had twelve glorious days of knowing. Now it feels like we took 5 giant steps back. Even though I know that is not entirely true, it feels that way.

But as I’ve gone about my day, I’ve been praying and asking the Lord for guidance and comfort. I have been reassured by what I do know.

I know that this means that Paul will get to do the job he was trained for, went away to school for and will hopefully also mean that he would be much less deployable (if at all.)

I know that I would much rather have found out this news now instead of two weeks or a month before moving.

I know that I have skills that are in demand and feel more confident in being able to find an opportunity where-ever we do end up (unless its a town with like 1000 people in it, then…not so much! )

I know that God is trying to teach me/us something. I may not know exactly what that is right now. But that’s OK. I trust. I have faith. (Or at least I am trying to the best of my human ability.) 🙂

So that’s it. The life of the military. No information yet about what this means next or where we might go next. I fully appreciate any and all prayers for patience while we wait to find out where God is going to take us!

I consider this weekend officially the start of my birthday week. Even though it’s not until this upcoming Thursday, the festivities began on Saturday. I fully endorse an entire week month of birthday celebration.

Then Paul and I hit the gym where I got in a lovely 4 miles. The first two were pretty much awful and the second two were much better. I was tired of running slower for longer periods of time and wanted to run faster for shorter periods of time. So I did. And it was fun. It was challenging but I felt accomplished.

I’ve decided I want to start my couch to 5k program over again, but this time work on a faster speed so I can build up to that. Just have to make sure I get in three runs a week. I’ve been doing that pretty consistently so I think I should be ok.

I know you missed the tomato face.

Then we got ready for my b-day party at our house.

I cut up the veggies and fruit

Took the pic before the pineapple was done…

Paul made the sandwiches

and he made sure that I took a pic of the one that looked like a heart. All together now….awwwwww

Then he made sure to point out to me the bottle of lime juice that he bought

We had a good laugh. We are dorks.

Then all the people showed up! YAY!

There was a serious poker game going on

and some girl talk

Then the cake made it’s way out and Paul went all math-tastic on it

He started with putting “36!” on it, but when he messed up the !, he changed it into a 5 and then added “till 37” and thought he was incredibly creative.

THEN, since my b-day isn’t technically for another 5 days, he went all equation and added this

Then we were all just tired. I was mainly worried about all the fire from the million candles. We even had to use TWO boxes. For some reason this made me verydepressed laugh.

That is some serious fire goin on on that there cake

It was a great evening. Lot’s of friends made it by even though we live pretty far away from “the scene.” Even Guinness and Chloe partied hard and were exhausted. So exhausted that we tried enticing them with treats and they were having none of it.

On Sunday, we hit up church and then decided since it wasn’t raining we would go for a bike ride. We layered up and headed out and about in our neighborhood. It’s been a while since we’ve been on the bikes. Pretty much since last summer, probably around the time we did the Cottage Lake Triathlon. Hadn’t even taken off the race bib yet.

We only went around 5-ish miles, but around here any distance means hills. You can’t escape them. So we got nice and sweaty and I def did some panting and possibly even some grunting. My legs felt like noodles afterward. So logically, when your legs feel like noodles…it’s time to go to Target.

I know, that makes no sense, but forgive me I’m trying to transition here.

So we headed to the happiest place on earth, or second happiest if you have a Costco membership and stopped at the front for some iced coffees. Paul strapped them in for safety.

We needed mustard (ran out at the party), zyrtec (so I don’t sneeze) and a new pillow (or pallow according to Amanda’s video) b/c my memory foam pillow is just about donezo. So we needed THREE things. And $150 later, we left with this.

We did end up getting the three things we originally needed, so I consider this a win. I also scored this new bag which passes “the test”. I know I haven’t talked about “the test” yet, but I will, don’t worry.

I really hate the yellow lighting from indoor pics. Maybe in Colorado I will get better light? My guess is yes.

Paul made dinner and tried this trick he learned on Pinterest…..yes…he is just as addicted as I am…..

apparently if you put a wooden spoon over a boiling pot of water it won’t boil over. Who knew? Pinterest apparently….

So while he did that, I made a new batch of my peanut butter protein balls. I LOVE these things. Also got the idea off Pinterest…here is the original website where they came from.

Then you can add in whatever else you like. Nuts, chocolate chips, oats, flax…I like to add the chocolate chips b/c it adds that little bit of chocalatey sweetness.

mix all together and roll into balls, I usually have to use my hands to really get them all blended. Keep them in the fridge.

These are so great when you feel a tinge of hunger and need something quick to stave off hunger pains, or they are also great as a little desert treat as well.

And that’s it!! Great weekend if I do say so myself (and I do.) Tomorrow we all have off for Presidents Day and then I am taking Thursday AND Friday off as well to celebrate my day of birth. Only have to work two days this week? YES PLEASE!

What did you do this weekend? Go to any awesome birthday parties?

Are you a February baby?

Ever spent more than you intended at Target or Costco? (Ok that is a dumb question, of course you have. What do you normally overspend on?)

Ever since I saw this preview for the fist time, I knew it was a movie that I would have to see eventually. The premise was just too interesting to ignore. Boy and girl fall in love and get married, accident happens, girl forgets boy, he continues to love her and (maybe, maybe not?) win her back. Bring on the tissues!

Plus, the thought of loosing 5 years of your life is also an interesting thing to think about. Until you remember where you were and what you were doing five years ago and then you are glad its Rachel McAdams having to deal with all that and not you.

We went to see this to kick off our Valentines Celebrationand it was fitting for the occasion. It wasn’t the best movie I have seen, and there were some holes here an there that I picked up on. It was also slightly difficult to follow the time line of the story. I think adding the little “3 months later” subtitles throughout the movie would have been helpful.

McAdamas was her normal cute self

and Channing Tatum was well….his cute self as well.

I don’t think he is really known for his acting chops but he did a good job of conveying his love for his sweetie. I wish they would have spent a little more time on the development of their relationship in order to convey the bond that we assumed that they shared, but they didnt dive enough into it for me to really really sense his unwavering love for her throughout her complete and total loss of memory of anything that had to do with him. He also wore a lot of weird sweaters. I mean, I get that they were trying to be stylish, but I don’t think it worked. And since I am a fashion expert, my opinion on this totally matters.

It was cool to know that it was based on true events, I would love to hear more about the “real” couples story. I’m sure Google can help me with that.

One thing it did really make me think about is what would happen if something like that happened to me or Paul. Both of us were in SUCH amazingly different places 5 years ago that if we knew then what 5 years in the future would look like we would both probably not believe it AT ALL. For one person to have all those memories and the other person not…I shiver at the thought.

Overall this one could have been a little better, but it was still enjoyable and made you think, which I think are two basic elements of any good movie. I know many people love to drool over Channing, but I will drool over my husband any day of the week over him. I mean look at that face…how could you not?